A moving documentary portrait of Sibelius, as seen through the lens of his seven symphonies, reveals the impact of multiple factors on the composer's identity and artistic output: the circumstances of his family life, his relationship with alcohol, the political-historical climate that shaped him, and—of course—the dizzying stylistic and philosophical evolution of music to which he contributed uniquely and definitively with an expansive and indispensable symphonic corpus.
Drawing upon all the elements of the composer's complex personal and social context, Finnish conductor Hannu Lintu traces an incisive portrait of his compatriot and offers thought-provoking insight into the intent and meaning of Sibelius's seven symphonies.